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Monday, December 19, 2016

WEP - MELTING SNOW

Judgement day for the winter ice challenge had arrived, and they were excited to learn if their favorites had won. Glenna had chosen the Dragon War, and David had picked the Angels in Flight. The winner would buy dinner at Anchorage's best restaurant, The Crow's Nest.

David told her the freshly fallen snow was the lure, but she knew that a proposal was his goal. Glenna was ready for the commitment. After all, they'd been together for over a year, and two people more suited didn't exist. They had similar goals, enjoyed all things outdoor, and they both agreed that love and family were the keys to success.

She'd met the handsome pilot on a flight she'd taken during a school training project. His knowledge and skill made the trip a success, and their first date left no doubt they had a future together. He'd cooked dinner for her over a campfire in the back yard of the cabin he'd built with his own hands. Fresh salmon, corn on the cob, new potatoes, and homemade blueberry ice cream. The way to a man's heart may be through his stomach, but for Glenna, his down-home cooking, adventure filled stories, and sense of humor had won her heart.

"Think twice, Sissy!" David shouted and threw the first snowball; just a handful of snow, but it caught Glenna by surprise.

"You're in trouble now," she yelled, but quickly gathered two handfuls and formed a perfect ball. She threw it, laughing and ducking at the same time. Their snowball fight lasted just minutes, but his concussion and subsequent coma would mar their future.

*****

Sissy, or Glenna Parks, as her friends knew her, rinsed her face with cold water, and stared at her reflection. Haggard looking after another sleepless night, she wondered how life could take such a sharp, sudden turn.

She'd just won the job of a lifetime and would be teaching history at the University of Alaska in Anchorage. David Carter, her beau, was about to pop the question, his recent inquiry the clue.

"How do you feel about antique jewelry?" he'd asked.

"I love all things with a history," she'd told him.

Life couldn't have been sweeter. She recalled his last kiss, confident that he was going down on one knee then. Instead, he gathered up a handful of snow and changed their lives forever.

Now he couldn't even recall her name. At first, he didn't know his own name, even denied being a pilot, claimed to be afraid of heights, and a Texan living in Alaska, not reality. The man who awoke from the coma was not the man who had slipped on the ice.

Dripping water reminded her of the blood she'd tried to staunch with their woolen scarves but to no avail. The paramedics hurried him away, and she followed. Glenna willed him back to consciousness, but she wasn't prepared for the hateful stranger who greeted her.

Now, a week later, a few memories had returned giving her hope that the rest would soon follow. Glenna wasn't sleeping, barely eating, and David's lack of recognition hurt on a level she didn't even know existed. Yesterday, he'd asked her to leave him alone.

"I don't need a stranger watching or commenting on my every move. Especially one with sad puppy dog eyes."

Hiding her tears, she left. Today she'd returned with an entire picture album of their adventures together, something to spark David's memory. She promised herself she would just drop it off, but when she arrived, he was asleep. She waited, watched, prayed, and eventually fell into a deep sleep herself.

Still holding his hand, she dreamed of the David she knew. The warmth and strength of him were as she remembered, but reality was waking in a sterile hospital room with spittle dripping from her open mouth. She rushed into the bathroom to revive herself. Gazing into the mirror, she vowed to recapture their happiness.

"Hey, beautiful. I was hoping you'd return for a visit," David said. The tone, the comment, hey beautiful, was pure David. Ready to answer, she dried her face, but someone else beat her to it.

"Hi, handsome. You look better. How are you feeling?"

Giggling.

"Oh my, you are feeling better!" The voice of the doctor who'd admitted him sounded too friendly, syrupy, and seductive.

"Except for an almost constant headache, pretty darn good, especially now that you're here!" David cooed.

Glenna listened. Their conversation wasn't the typical discussion between doctor and patient. They were flirting.

"Why don't you spring me from this place? I'll buy dinner?' David asked.

"Glenna? No. No way, she's not my type. Believe me. We're just friends. I actually had to ask her to leave. I honestly hope she never comes back. That whiny voice of hers grates on the ears. Besides, what adult woman would ever accept Sissy as a nickname?"

"You sure you remember everything. What about the ring we found in your pocket?"

"Yeah, I know. The engagement ring was my mother’s. Dad sent it to me along with a few other mementos. That ring has nothing to do with Sissy."

The way he said her nickname hurt deep in her soul. It was meant to be something only they shared. Sissy was an endearment her grandfather used when she was younger, and David claimed for his own. No one else could call her Sissy.

Glenna managed to leave the room without notice. The silhouette of their embrace on the curtain, then the sound of kissing assaulted her as she crept away. She dropped the picture album in the wastebasket and left the hospital just moments after a blizzard hit, but she didn't feel the Arctic chill, or the warm tears streaming from her eyes.

Nor did Glenna see the car that careened out of control due to the ice and snow.

32 comments:

Damn, she sure had it rough. Picture perfect everything and then ice ended that. Oh how life can turn. When you're about to get engaged, avoid snowball fights. Great one indeed. Although I admit I was half expecting you to have her suffocate him with a pillow lol

Happiness is so precarious - on or off the snow! Agree with Pat up there - no snowballs before the ring is safely on the finger :) I hope the doctor biffs the creep one too in due course, and brings memories of Glenna back.

On an entirely different note , I had hoped you would set your entry in Alaska, so I am thrilled that you have. Your stories somehow are so fun even when they're dire - story telling par excellence!

Thanks, Nila: For some reason I usually go there first, especially when snow and ice are called for. :) I know he's become a cad, but he wasn't one before the accident. There are cases after a head trauma where personality changes, his just took a turn for the worse.

An absolutely excellent dream turned nightmare. You had me every step of the way. The only thing I would have liked more was if you ha left the last two words (killing her) off. Let me decide what really happened to her, or better yet not know for sure. After all he had already broken her heart beyond repair, what worse could happen,

A story with a sad ending and fatal ending for the woman who was in love. It shows that things can change instantly. A concussion can wipe out the happiness for the future. Very well written. I love your ending. Shalom aleichem,Pat Garcia

Oh, no... Although, on one hand, maybe that accident at the end felt more like release than tragedy to Glenna. What a sad, sad story, Yolanda—and one that plays out, with small variations, in so many lives all around the globe. I have a friend who, while on vacation with his girlfriend in Chile, had an accident that left him in a coma for several months. He came out of it, but never recovered fully... And, yes, the relationship didn't survive. I can't help feeling a bit of disdain for David, although rationally I understand he has no control over whom he loves (or doesn't). Very well written, Yolanda — thank you!

Happy holidays to you and yours, Yolanda... May 2017 be a better year than we expect :)Guilie @ Quiet Laughter

How awful for Glenna! Please tell me she gets injured (only) by that vehicle and loses her memory, then David gets his memory back, wants Glenna back and she tells him to...well, you know. :p Very, very engaging! Just the right amount of happy before the accident and reversal of fortune.

Oh, Yolanda, this one tugged at my heartstrings. I had to deal with something similar when my husband had a cardiac arrest. He had to relearn everything. It's been an adjustment which I've been dealing with since the summer of 2014. One moment is all it takes to turn our lives totally around. Excellent entry for this challenge.

I am going to add one last sentence. "The out of control car just missed hitting Glenna, and the driver, a super handsome man, got out to make sure that Glenna was ok and they fell in love and lived happily ever after."

Would love to hear from you, say hello and leave your blog address - I'll visit, but please take with you my undying gratitude that you stopped by for a read. Be well, be happy, and may your blog surfing bring you joy!